VIDEO: New name, new direction for Troy print shop

By Ian Benjamin

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

TROY -- Despite being closed for the past two weeks, Design It Together, the mixed-media, studio-print shop on the first floor of 291 River Street, has been a hub of activity, as its owners Taylor Gillis and Ben Karis-Nix prepare to reopen the business under a new name --Print Lab at Troy Cloth and Paper-- this Friday.

While design may be a passion for the two artist-entrepreneurs, they realize that it is production which generates the revenue needed to keep the doors open. That does not mean the two artists -- some of whose eye-catching designs are synonymous with downtown Troy -- are going to be leaving design behind completely. Instead, they plan to shift more of their focus to helping prospective screen printers and burgeoning artists create and reproduce their own work.

When Gillis and Karis-Nix moved from their storefront in the Market Block building -- now occupied by Aurora's Boutique -- to their current space a year ago, they began an experiment that was much like "throwing spaghetti on the wall," said Karis-Nix, during an interview Monday afternoon in the Print Lab. In the new space, the creative duo has not only continued to design websites, posters and album art as well as their own clothing line -- the source of the Troy Cloth and Paper brand -- but have also experimented by offering classes and increasing their bulk production.

Between offering the classes and fulfilling production orders, they "didn't have as much time to give the design side of things as much attention," said Gillis. "So we're letting go of that a little bit."

Much of the demand for bulk production -- the heart of the business -- has been from the local music community in which Karis-Nix, a musician himself, is involved. However, once they opened their new storefront, they began receiving orders from Russell Sage College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and as well as local businesses. They recently filled a shirt orders from both the Troy Dance Factory, and the Troy Music Academy. While bulk production, as well as retail sales, are financially important, Gillis and Karis-Nix are more interested in teaching their trade to others.

With the redesign and rebranding of their shop, the pair hopes to make the Print Lab "more of a community resource," as opposed to a closed-off production facility, explained Gillis. Six months ago, they began offering classes in monocolor and multicolor printing, wedding workshops, and an introductory class in collaboration with the Arts Center of the Capital Region.

Held once a month, the average size of Intro to Printing has been between five and ten people. A LivingSocial campaign in March bolstered their class sizes, Gillis added, but most of the interest in their services has been via word of mouth. "They've been getting busier as we go," said Gillis, and he expects they will continue to grow.

Whether printing for local artists Molly Durnin and Taina Asili, or bringing people into the studio for a class, it is their interest in being part of and fostering community that has driven much of the pair's creative endeavors. As for the focus on teaching? Gillis explained that, quite simply, "we like the idea of teaching people how to print."